The girls and I have looking at the incredible art of Disney Artist, Victoria Ying, in quiet amazement and, I’ll say it, more than a little envy on my part for a long while now. Last night, we saw her ballerina cats on a 2012 calendar she created and had to draw. Ballet and cats? The girls were sold.

One of the highlights of HeroesCon for us was the Womanthology panel. The remarkable ladies on the panel kindly invited Grace to participate and even gave her an incredible poster they all signed afterwards. They were so nice and encouraging to her. We made many new friends – Rachel Deering, Rachel Pandich and the amazing Becka Seashols, an incredibly prolific artist. (Seriously, follower her on Instagram and just see how much she cranks out in a day … awesome). Click here to see her Web site and here to follow her on Twitter!

Like many of you, the girls and I have fallen head over heels for the newest Disney cartoon, Gravity Falls. With excellent vocal actors and amazing art direction that feels positively inspired by Schoolhouse Rock, it’s a must watch … and draw.

First up, is an awesome sketch of Mabel & Dipper by our buddy, Joe Hunter, whose work you can see here: http://ghostbucket.com/

Here’s ours …

And, for kicks, Grace got in on the act to draw the evil gnomes …
(P.S. Cate is mad at me. She meant to write “I am a freak,” but, as she often reminds me of Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica, I had to leave it as “I am a frak.”)

And, if you’ve ever wanted to see gnomes puking rainbows, this is the show for you!

It’s hard to believe it, but this time next week, we’ll have enjoyed the first day of HeroesCon. (Okay … we’re really excited.)

Two folks we’re really looking forward to seeing are Joe Quinonesand Maris Wicks. Apart, they’re awesome. Together? It’s hard to imagine that must amazing working in one studio at the same time. The girls and I had fun rummaging around their blogs for inspiration … and you should, too.

And, now a word from Joe!

@5MinuteMarvels Great stuff! Thanks for sending it along. We'll see you next week at Heroes!

HereosCon is almost here! Less than two weeks! Wow. One of our favorite friends last year was Andy Runton, creator of the Owly books. He has a joy of drawing and for fans that is absolutely infectious! He also has a wonderful habit of drawing Owly and Wormy as a wide array of characters … evidenced by hundreds of “Owly As …” sketches on his Web site. So, Cate drew Owly as a Hula Girl, Grace as a ballerina and me as The Thing & Human Torch!